MDUSD Board to Vote on Resolution to Oppose NUSD

by northgatecaps ·
Published January 21, 2017
· Updated January 21, 2017

By Linda Loza

The MDUSD Board intends to vote on a resolution opposing the creation of the Northgate Unified School District (NUSD) at the Board Meeting this Monday (1/23/17). The resolution is not part of the County approval process; it is simply a statement of MDUSD’s position.

We already know that they inherently do not support the creation of NUSD.

More importantly we find it ironic that this agenda item is indicative of the very issues that have driven our Community to seek its own school district. MDUSD is once again going to vote on an issue without first reviewing the facts.

Will this ever change?

All of the information we will be presenting to the County regarding NUSD will be made public prior to the public hearing. We are putting the final touches on an extensive evaluation of our proposal and it’s adherence to the nine criteria required by the California Department of Education. In addition, the County will also address the nine criteria using their own consultant. An MDUSD governing board who was truly interested in making sound, well thought-out decisions and being accountable for those decisions, would examine that information prior to voting on a resolution.

The only information presented by staff to the MDUSD Board to date is two demographic pie charts. If it wasn’t so sad, it would be comical that they are relying on two pie charts of questionable demographic data, no corresponding analysis, and no definitive comparison of the information and the requirements of Criteria 4 when addressing this complex issue. In fact, the two pie charts comparing district-wide demographics to those of a single Northgate-area high school feeder pattern provides an example of using irrelevant data in a misleading manner. There is no reason to expect any single feeder pattern to exactly mirror district-wide demographics, and even within MDUSD, that usually doesn’t occur.

We have a community that will all too easily recognize this as just one more decision regarding our community that lacks thought, good data, and any sensitivity to the thousands of community members who support this effort as it relates to their children and community.